Assalamu-alaikum brothers and sisters.. I am a new convert (if you can call me that since I have stopped praying and grew confused about islam), recently due to some changes in my life I moved back to my native country Ukraine, particularly in an area where there are no muslims or almost none. Since I am a new convert, I had and still have a lot of questions, I mean at first I was so moved by islam and after I came back here and started reading about it online I became really confused.. Are we really guided by Quran? Or by Hadith and Sunnah? I wonder about praying.. let's say I went on a walk in woods, around here it snows a lot during winter and it gets as cold as -4F, how do you pray? Do you take off your shoes? How do you make wudu in such weather? Also hadith.. there's so much confusing stuff about it.. I think I red somewhere where prophet Muhammad (pbuh) came up to someone who was sleeping on his stomach and kicked(!!?!) him telling it's not good to sleep on stomach, why is that? I heard we have to sleep on a right side, I wonder who cares how I sleep?? And kicking a person? Why not to touch him on a shoulder? Why did our prophet (pbuh) had more then four wives? What about Aisha, why is she "favourite" wife? Isn't it against Quran? And why did revelations about her not committing adultary came so late? ..Please answer.. these are only couple of many that I have, thanks in advance.

Assalamu-alaikum brothers and sisters.. I am a new convert (if you can call me that since I have stopped praying and grew confused about islam), recently due to some changes in my life I moved back to my native country Ukraine, particularly in an area where there is no muslims or almost none. Since I am a new convert, I had and still have a lot of questions, I mean at first I was so moved by islam and after I came back here and started reading about it online I became really confused.. Are we really guided by Quran? Or by Hadith and Sunnah?

We guided by both. Hadith usually explain about thing that quran doesn't say it in detail. For example about 5 daily salat (prayer). Quran just ask you to do it, but doesn't tell you how. How we perform salat we get it from hadith. As far as I know there is no contradiction between quran and hadith. If there is Quran have higher hierarchy.

Originally posted by Uri S

I wonder about praying.. let's say I went on a walk in woods, around here it snows a lot during winter and it gets as cold as -4F, how do you pray?

Do you take off your shoes? How do you make wudu in such weather?

Islam is not make you difficult. There is many dispensation in shalat. If you can not wudhu, due to sickness or no water, or any other condition impossible to perform wudhu you can do tayamum (put your hand on any surface then rub your hand, face and arms). Regarding shoes, when you are in a warm place (inside your house etc) take wudhu completely with taking of your shoes then put your shoes and sock on, after that let say you go outside or whatever if you need to do wudhu again you don't need to put you shoes or socks off. If you are not traveling you can wudhu without putting your shoes for 24 hours but if your traveling you can do this for 3 days. Regarding how to perform shalat if you can not do perfectly with ruku and sujud (prostrate) you can do with sitting in the chair etc. Basically in general Islam is easy and doesn't like you have difficulties.

For the rest I'll answer some other time, or somebody else will do.

Edited by semar - 27 January 2010 at 10:04pm

Salam/Peace,
Semar
The Prophet said: "Do not eat before you are hungry, and stop eating before you are full"
"1/3 of your stomach for food 1/3 for water, 1/3 for air"

Quoting Semar:
"We guided by both. Hadith usually explain about thing that quran doesn't say it in detail. For example about 5 daily salat (prayer). Quran just ask you to do it, but doesn't tell you how. How we perform salat we get it from hadith. As far as I know there is no contradiction between quran and hadith. If there is Quran have higher hierarchy."

Isn't Ouran complete as we say..?

Quoting Semar:
"Islam is not make you difficult. There is many dispensation in shalat. If you can not wudhu, due to sickness or no water, or any other condition impossible to perform wudhu you can do tayamum (put your hand on any surface then rub your hand, face and arms). Regarding shoes, when you are in a warm place (inside your house etc) take wudhu completely with taking of your shoes then put your shoes and sock on, after that let say you go outside or whatever if you need to do wudhu again you don't need to put you shoes or socks off. If you are not traveling you can wudhu without putting your shoes for 24 hours but if your traveling you can do this for 3 days. Regarding how to perform shalat if you can not do perfectly with ruku and sujud (prostrate) you can do with sitting in the chair etc. Basically in general Islam is easy and doesn't like you have difficulties."

Thanks for explanation and yeah I know islam should not be a burden, yet I didn't get an answer to my question.. Like I said imagine that I am on a walk in woods, it had snowed and theres couple inches of snow.. There's a river close by that is not frozen yet, so I do have water to perform wudu, but can you imagine what will happen to me if I get my hair wet while it's -4F?? Or should I perform tayamum with snow? It wouldn't be pleasant I'd tell you that. And if I perform salat outside while being wet it's sure one of the ways to get sick, don't you think? Answer anyone? Thanks.

P.S. Sorry about my post, haven't figured out how to use all the options.

[QUOTE=Uri S]Assalamu-alaikum brothers and sisters.. I am a new convert (if you can call me that since I have stopped praying and grew confused about islam),

Wa'laikum Salam wa rahmatullah

Welcome to the discussions at Islamicity, brother.

All Praises be to Allah, that you shared your doubts with us here. Insha Allah, we shall try our best to help you in gaining knowledge.

recently due to some changes in my life I moved back to my native country Ukraine, particularly in an area where there are no muslims or almost none.

Brother, is it not possible that you move to a place where there are muslims.

Since I am a new convert, I had and still have a lot of questions,

Yes, you shud have questions. These questions are sign of a healthy mind . Islam has answers to all the questions that rise, during this process of clearing our doubts, we gain lots of knowledge. Don't take this {questions} as a negative aspect, as said, its a good sign. Even we get lots of questions and get them cleared, alhamdullilah.

Also hadith.. there's so much confusing stuff about it.. I think I red somewhere where prophet Muhammad (pbuh) came up to someone who was sleeping on his stomach and kicked(!!?!) him telling it's not good to sleep on stomach, why is that? I heard we have to sleep on a right side, I wonder who cares how I sleep?? And kicking a person? Why not to touch him on a shoulder?

Good question.

Don't you think, bro. that Islam is a complete way of life. It teaches us how to sit, how to walk, how to drink water, how to eat our food, and indeed how to sleep ! All these actions and sayings of our Prophet , which we call as sunnahs, are today proven by scientifically correct. We muslims follow these sunnahs, with the intentions that we are obeying Allah's command by following Prophet.

We were discussing about sleep, right ! {Here's sharing from sunnipath and a blog as well}

Shaykh Abdul Haq in his book Madarijun Nabuwa states,

"because the heart is on the left one will not be satisfied with the sleep and the person will sleep heavily not knowing his state. If one sleeps on the right side the heart dangles meaning a person cannot sleep heavily. This benefits a person as he can look after himself and his family if anything happens. A major benefit is that one will not miss the morning prayeras one is not engaged in heavy sleep.

Gilbert found that if researchers had pooled the results of the oldest studies and analyzed them, they might have gotten a big hint by 1970 that putting babies to sleep on their stomachs raised the risk of SIDS. Instead, that observation did not become convincing until the late 1980s.

Researchers now know that sleeping on the stomach raises the risk of SIDS sevenfold. That realization led to "Back to Sleep" campaigns in Britain in 1991 and in the United States in 1994. The meaning of SIDS is (sudden infant death syndrome )

Between 1970 and the unveiling of that advice, 11,000 British infants -- who might have survived if sleeping on the back had been the norm -- died of SIDS. In the United States, Europe and Australia, "at least 50,000 excess deaths were attributable to harmful health advice," Gilbert and her colleagues wrote.

Today science tells us that it is best to sleep on the right side or back and not on the left side and stomach. Glory be to Allah, how did the glorious Prophet Muhammad know this back in his time? Truly he is a great example for us all to follow (Surah 33:21) for all time.

Also read this, insha Allah, shall help us increase our knowledge.

HADITH; Hadhrat Aisha radhiallahu anha states, "Whosoever sleeps after Asr salah and loses their intellect only has themselves to blame. "SCIENCE; A gas exits from the earth at the time of Asr salah which is heavy and can effect a person's mind and heart. If a person sleeps before Isha, the body also sleeps and cannot fight this gas hence causing illnesses.

QUOTE]

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “All the descendants of Adam are sinners, and the best of sinners are those who repent."

First, of all let’s talk some facts and history about marrying more than one…

Before Islam (in many cultures and religions) it was normal for people to marry many women at the same time without any limitation whatsoever.

Marrying more than one isn’t an Islamic “invention”. For instance, Prophet David (PBUH) was said to have about 300 women (wives and all). And prophet Soliman (PBUH) was said to have about 700 women.

When Islam came, it put the limitation of 4 (with conditions).

When the above Quranic verse was revealed, all muslims (whom had more than 4 wives) had to limit themselves to 4 or less (depending on the case). And so they did.

Yet, at that time the prophet (PBUH) was married to 9 wives (before this order was revealed), and he didn’t divorce them.Why? Here’s why…

Let it be know that in Islam, the Prophet’s wives are of special value and stance. They are not like any other women…

What a lot of people don’t know (I being one of them before I researched for answers), is that before the above verse (limiting to 4 wives) was revealed\descended to the prophet, another order (rule) was revealed\descended a while back…

That order was mentioned in this verse (from Al Ahzaab):

God descended an order that “no one was to marry any of the women the Prophet married”.

Before applying that ruling on the wives, they were provided a choice…either to stay his wives and stick to the ruling (never to remarry again) or for them to get divorced at that time… they all preferred to stay with him!

The reasons for such a rule (his wives never to remarry)are obvious, it was to protect the prophet and his wives (whether while or after the prophet passed away) from any form of harm or mistreatment.

Imagine for example, after the prophet’s death any of his wives would remarry, and be mistreated in any way by a husband. Imagine (as a muslim) the impact of this on us!!

Or even if any of his wives would remarry, and be verbally mocked by atheists (who were ready to use anything just to demoralize or mock the prophet, his wives and muslims). You can imagine the type of low talk that can be used in such a situation, no need to mention it here.

This of course was important because the wives of the prophet have a very special stance in Islam (after all they are called “Mothers of all Muslims”).

So, here is the situation:1- God said the prophet’s wives (9 of them at the time) are not to remarry after him.2- God ordered muslims not to marry more than 4 at the same time.

In other words, the prophet will have to divorce 5 out of the 9 he had as wives at that point. Those 5 will neither be his wives nor any one else's (unlike all other women who when divorced can remarry).

Out of God’s mercy for the Prophet’s wives, He descended this verse:

t is an order from God directed to the prophet (specifically) never to marry anymore women at all (keeping the 9 he already has). And that he (the prophet) does not have the right to replace his wives (divorce one or more and marry new ones while keeping his limit of wives at 9).

And this rule (that applied to him only) was the answer for his situation (since he had 9 wives whom cannot remarry again).

So, from that point on... neither could the prophet remarry nor could his wives!

Special case, special reason and that was that.

Source : Blogspot - Fadfation.

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “All the descendants of Adam are sinners, and the best of sinners are those who repent."

First, I am so glad to see you brother, and welcome to the IC, Wish you get the whole benefit.

It is really nice that you share and ask about anything you do not understand,, we are all here to learn from each other.

Well, brother, I am not a scholar, but I am a sister who cares for you and prays that Allah guides you. I want to add my few cents.

Here are some points, I would like to share.

1- The method of studying Islam starts from the base of Islam. We believe that Allah created the whole world and put it in a great order. He loves us and wants the best for us, SO that He subhanah, orders us to do everything that is good and healthy for us and forbids us from doing anything that harms us. We need to pray because Allah wants us to be close to Him all the time, to be guided and helped by Him. But Islam never wants anything hard or difficult for us. There are many many verses in Quraan that tell us how Allah is full of mercy and never asks us to do anything we can not bear or that might be harmful for us.

2.286 On no soul doth Allah Place a burden greater than it can bear. Quraan.

2.185 Allah intends every facility for you; He does not want to put to difficulties. (He wants you) to complete the prescribed period, and to glorify Him in that He has guided you; and perchance ye shall be grateful.

So if the weather is so cold and you know that it might harm you, so you must NOT use water and if you used it while you know it harms you, then you did a sin.

Jabir said, "We were on a journey and one of us got injured. Later, he had a wet dream. He asked his companions, 'Can I perform tayammum?' They said, 'No, not if you have water.' He performed ghusl and died. When they came to the Messenger of Allah, they informed him of what had transpired. He said, 'They killed him, Allah will kill them. Do you not ask if you do not know? The rescue of the ignorant person is the question. He could have performed tayammum and dropped water on his wound or wrapped it with something and wipe over the wrapping, and wash the rest of his body." This is related by Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah, ad-Daraqutni and Ibn as-Sakin, who said it is sahih.

2.195 and make not your own hands contribute to (your) destruction; but do good; for Allah loveth those who do good.

But Allah taught us that we can never miss the prayer and we need to do wudu or tayammum if we can not. SO you do what is not burden on you and avoid any harm. Do you know that if someone is sick and can not move any part of his body, he can pray moving his eyelids. SO Allah wants us to keep this prayer as mush as we can, because we need to pray to be protected and safe.. to be close to Allah and connected to Him, He is our creator and He knows the best of us. We do not pray or do any worship because Allah needs it,, He is the Needless but we need do need Him.

35.15 O ye men! It is ye that have need of Allah: but Allah is the One Free of all wants, worthy of all praise.

2- Why did the prophet peace be upon him kicked the man? You should read how he used to be so so so gentle not only with his companions but even with his enemies. He used to smile all the time. He used to put his hand on the shoulders, the chest,, or the thigh of the person he wants to talk to. He never takes his hand from the person when he shakes hands with him until the other person pull his hand.

The other part of the question about why he should care for the way we sleep,, I think sister Seekshidayath replied with good answer to this, Baraka Allah Fiha.

He, peace be upon him, did not acre only for the way we sleep,, he even cared for the way we do in the bathroom, may Allah raise your rank.

3- Why did he married more than the others? I just want to add my few cents. You should read the biography of the prophet peace be upon him to know that there was a reason for marring everyone of his wives. Some political reason, some social reason,, and some other reasons.

Why does he loved our mother Aisha, RAA? There are many reasons how she cared for him more and used to be special,, but at the end of the day,, the man sometimes loves a woman more than the other women for his own reasons and you know more as a man. Love is something comes from the heart,, and everyone has the right to love the one he wants but he is asked about doing what pleases Allah with them. He must be just in the things that he can do as a human being. ..........................................

I just want to you to stay strong. Being a Muslim in some societies is not that easy. BUT you need to ask Allah to help you and make you stronger.

You and all of us, need Allah more than everyone else. He is the only one who guides you and lightens your heart. You should ask more and learn more,, until you reach the moment that your heart loves and believes before it knows. Your heart will love to do what Allah wants before knowing why.. because your heart will be full of faith in him and love to Him.

I pray to Allah to guide us and make it easy for all of us to please Him and stay close to Him.. I hope you get the benefit form this.

Note:

You can use the site of the IslamiCity to study more, and want to suggest this site for studying Islam online.

An electronic certificate is awarded on completion of each course. This is completely free and online under supervision of Dr Bilal Philips.

Thanks for replying. ..I think it'd be better if I number sayings and questions..

To seekshidayath:

1. Yes, belive me sister - there are almost no muslims around here, it's a little rural city in western Ukraine, eastern orthodoxy is a main religion around here. I heard about one guy, but he doesn't work as far as I know and he tries to be around his home when it's time to pray.. therefore he cannot answer my question.

2. Now.. slpeeping on a right side.. Well, there are people that are not able to sleep on a right side due to the problem with liver.. And then are you telling me that you go to sleep on a right side and always wake up on a right side? You got to be kidding me.. as for me I move all over my bed.

To Full Of Hopes:

First of all thanks for praying.

3.You haven't really brighten me up on a question that I've asked. I mean I already knew that islam shouldn't be a burden.. As for " Jabir said, "We were on a journey and one of us got injured. Later, he had a wet dream. He asked his companions, 'Can I perform tayammum?' They said, 'No, not if you have water.' He performed ghusl and died. When they came to the Messenger of Allah, they informed him of what had transpired. He said, 'They killed him, Allah will kill them. Do you not ask if you do not know? The rescue of the ignorant person is the question. He could have performed tayammum and dropped water on his wound or wrapped it with something and wipe over the wrapping, and wash the rest of his body." This is related by Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah, ad-Daraqutni and Ibn as-Sakin, who said it is sahih." I didn't get the situation.. What was better for a guy to perform a ghusl or tayammum?? Or performing both? And I really didn't get the passage where it says "He could have performed tayammum and dropped water on his wound or wrapped it with something and wipe over the wrapping, and wash the rest of his body." - seems like it's both.. If he was able to do ghusl what was the tayammum for?

4. "Why did the prophet (pbuh) kicked the man".. Strange, you didn't deny him (pbuh) doing it, therefore I take it did happen. You just told me that I should read how he (pbuh) was so gentle at other times.. I am not trying to say that he (pbuh) wasn't gentle, I am just trying to get an answer on this particular matter - as for why did he (pbuh) kick the man?

5. I still didn't get an answer to this neither: "let's say I went on a walk in woods, around here it snows a lot during winter and it gets as cold as -4F, how do you pray? Do you take off your shoes? How do you make wudu in such weather?" So do I perform wudu ..or tayammum with snow? Eather one in such weather would not be pleasant.. Cause I guess praying without wudu or tayammum is out of question. So WHAT DO I DO IN SUCH SITUATION??

9. Satan sleeps in ones nose, so water should be snorted each day (Bukhari 54:516)

Please explain, cause these really got me CONFUSED.

10. And a last one for now.. I was told numerous times that islam is religion of peace. Then why such hatred towards christians? And let's imagine for a moment that my christian (yes I was born into a christian family) parents got killed in a suicide attack. How should I feel as a muslim? Is he my brother dying for a cause or a killer of my parents? And if our religion is peace and we are so enlighten, how come we are using guns instead of words??

P.S. Don't get me wrong, these are just questions that are bothering me and all I want is some explanation. Tnanks in advance. Peace be with you.

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